Secretary Qi's father and Uncle Qi were close, and Aunt Qi often gave him good food when he was a child. Now that Aunt Qi is getting old, it's good for her to have someone to keep her company, which can also alleviate the housing pressure at the educated youth settlement. Moreover, this new educated youth girl is diligent, likable, and kind-hearted. Giving her a better living environment is just his way of returning the favor.
He Tiantian didn't want to share a room with Huang Jingli and Lin Xiaoru. Staying at Grandma Qi's house meant she could have a large room. She could do whatever she wanted without worrying about being seen.
"Thank you, Grandma," He Tiantian said crisply. Although Grandma Qi San had a bad family background, she was of high seniority and had some influence in the village. Living in Grandma Qi San's house, no one in the village would bully her.
Huang Jingli and Lin Xiaoru were delighted to hear that He Tiantian didn't have to share a room with them, and they treated He Tiantian with even more kindness and gentleness.
As for Li Mingkai, he had his own little plan: if Huang Jingli and Lin Xiaoru shared one room, he could have one all to himself. It was great not having to share a room with anyone else.
Grandma Qi's house is the third house in the second row at the entrance of the village. The yard is large, the house is not small, and there is a large vegetable garden in front of the house.
Qi Ergou carried Qi San's grandmother inside, while Huang Jingli and Lin Xiaoru helped He Tiantian with her luggage.
"Sweetie, if you need anything at the educated youth settlement, just let us know," Huang Jingli said with a smile. He Tiantian was so strong; if they worked together, they could slack off a bit. Now that He Tiantian had voluntarily moved into a fellow villager's home, saving them space, they appreciated her kindness.
"Thank you so much, Sister Xiaoru and Sister Jingli," He Tiantian said. "I'll ask you for help if I need anything."
Secretary Qi was also tired. After making arrangements for Grandma Qi, he said to the group, "Go back and put down your luggage, then go to the village branch to collect this month's grain and grain coupons."
Upon hearing that they could receive grain and grain coupons, the group's eyes lit up; they could finally have a proper lunch.
"Thank you, Secretary Qi." The group thanked Secretary Qi, their former arrogance gone. Now that their food supply was in his hands, they felt insecure and lacked confidence.
Secretary Qi went to the village branch, and Qi Ergou took Huang Jingli and others to the educated youth settlement that had been converted from the land temple.
Instead of packing her own things, He Tiantian found Grandma Qi's wooden washbasin, took a towel, and helped Grandma Qi wash up and change into clean clothes.
"Grandma Qi, let's wash our faces," He Tiantian said with a smile. The water in the large vat outside was warm from the sun, not cold, and could be used to wipe the body.
Grandma Qi was delighted; she had made the right decision to keep this girl.
"Thank you for your trouble," said Grandma Qi. "Girl, what's your name?"
"My name is He Tiantian, Grandma can just call me Tiantian," He Tiantian replied. "My home is in Nanshi, so I'll be troubling Grandma Qi to take care of me from now on."
Nanshi?
If my son hadn't gone to school in Nanshi back then, maybe he wouldn't have disappeared?
They were nowhere to be found, neither alive nor dead!
Ugh, I don't want to think about it anymore, the more I think about it, the more upset I get.
"My dear child, you haven't had lunch yet, have you? There are some vegetable pancakes I made at noon in the cupboard next door. Hurry up and eat some to fill your stomach," said Grandma Qi, urging He Tiantian to go and eat something. This girl was kind-hearted, efficient, and didn't look down on her, an old woman. She insisted on keeping the girl to keep her company.
She's been alone for too long, living in an empty house, feeling so lonely and isolated. Her strength has been waning these past few years, and she longs for someone to be by her side and help her.
He Tiantian was indeed hungry. She washed her hands, opened the cupboard, and found two vegetable pancakes inside, presumably for Grandma Qi's dinner. He Tiantian didn't stand on ceremony and ate the pancakes, planning to cook something delicious for Grandma Qi that evening after receiving her food rations.
After dinner, He Tiantian poured a glass of water by Grandma Qi's bedside and said, "Grandma, I ate those two vegetable pancakes. I'm going to the village committee to get my grain now. I'll cook you something nice tonight."
"Go ahead, I won't stand on ceremony with you," Grandma Qi said with a smile, drinking the water He Tiantian poured for her, feeling quite comfortable.
He Tiantian went out and followed her memory to the old village branch.
The old village branch office was located next to the threshing ground. It consisted of six large rooms, four of which were generally used to store grain, while the other two large rooms contained two tables and several chairs. This was the village branch office.
When He Tiantian arrived, Huang Jingli, Lin Xiaoru, and Li Mingkai were already there.
"Alright, you're all here. Now, let's distribute the food. According to the county's notice, each educated youth will receive ten catties of coarse grain flour, ten catties of rice, ten catties of corn, two catties of soybeans, two catties of grain coupons, two feet of cloth coupons, two liang of salt coupons, and two liang of oil coupons per month." Secretary Qi distributed the items and placed them on the table.
This amount of food is barely enough to eat; not enough to fill you up, but not enough to starve you either.
"Thank you, Secretary Qi," Huang Jingli said. She had no job in her hometown county and couldn't earn money. She only received 15 jin of grain rations a month, which was far from enough to feed her. Now she had more than 30 jin, which would greatly improve her life.
After packing up their tickets, the group was about to leave when Secretary Qi said, "You've just arrived, so you probably don't know the situation in the village yet. You can rest for a day and familiarize yourselves with the village. You'll start working the day after tomorrow. A few of the previous educated youths will be there to guide you. You'll earn work points by working, and your grain and various coupons will be distributed based on your work points. The more you work, the more you get; the less you work, the less you get; and if you don't work, you don't get anything."
"Secretary Qi, don't worry. We're not afraid of hardship or fatigue in supporting rural development," Huang Jingli said, making her stance clear: no one should be freeloading, and it's only right to eat and work.
"We understand, Secretary Qi," Lin Xiaoru said. If others can do it, so can she.
Li Mingkai nodded in agreement. There are many kinds of work. If he offends the village secretary, he will suffer the consequences if he is assigned dirty or hard work in the future.
Secretary Qi felt a bit disdainful. These educated youths were all talk and no action; when it came to actual work, they would complain and whine. But they wouldn't complain for long. If they didn't work, they wouldn't get work points; without work points, they wouldn't get any grain; and without grain, they would go hungry. Once these educated youths experienced the hardship of hunger, they would work diligently.
Because hunger is more terrible than exhaustion!
After taking the things, He Tiantian followed the three of them back to the village.
He Tiantian wasn't hungry, but Huang Jingli, Lin Xiaoru, and Li Mingkai hadn't had lunch yet, so they hurriedly returned to the educated youth settlement.
He Tiantian put the grain in the storage room, picked up a broom, and swept the front and back yards clean. She picked some cucumbers, tomatoes, and green beans from the vegetable garden by the door, and then weeded the garden thoroughly.
Seeing that it was cool outside, He Tiantian carried Grandma Qi out of the house.
Yes, she carried her out. He Tiantian is very strong now; she can easily carry an 80-pound old lady.
"Grandma Qi, it's stuffy inside, but cool outside." He Tiantian put Grandma Qi on a chair outside. It was already past three in the afternoon, and the trees in the yard were providing more shade. A gentle breeze brought a comfortable coolness.
"Hehe, thanks to you, otherwise this old woman would have no one to take care of her," Grandma Qi said with a sigh, feeling extremely melancholy.
This is the tragedy of having no children!
Whether her son is alive or dead, no one knows!
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